Faversham boss Ray Turner hopes sacrificing some attacking flair will help Town claw their way back into the play-off race.

Turner claimed Town’s 4-3 reverse at Horsham on Saturday was as bad as it’s been for Town this season so far as they slipped to 14th in Ryman League, Division 1 South.

They are as many points (nine) above the relegation zone as they are below
the play-off places they perennially chase.

The Lilywhites allowed a first-half lead to slip – conceding three times in 11 minutes around the hour – and despite battling back in the final 10 minutes to make it 3-3, they fell to a last-minute winner.

He said: “It was the low point of the season. We’ve not been in a great spell. Players have been playing as individuals a bit but we need to revise how we have been going about our
business.

“The worst thing that probably happened was that we started outplaying a couple of teams.

“Over the course of a 46-game season you can’t rely on being brilliant in every game.
“We need to be meaner defensively, even if that means being a bit more boring than usual.”

Town bounced back with a League Cup second round win over Hastings at the Shepherd Neame Stadium on Tuesday night via penalties after a 1-1 draw.

Turner said: “The game was a good opportunity to hit reset on ourselves. It was the first time since April I have been able to call upon a full team of senior players.

“Matt Bourne is steady for us. In the last four games he hasn’t played for us we had conceded 14 goals. When he plays, we concede a goal a game on average.

“That was Jamie Maxted’s first appearance of the season and we had Luke Harvey ready to come on. These players have been integral to our success in the last few years and are going to be going forward, too.”

Town head to struggling Molesey on Saturday (3pm) and Turner added: “It’s important to put some points on the board and hopefully go on an unbeaten run.

“We want to claw our way back and try not to fall too far behind. As we have seen last year, we have experience at seeing how quickly things can change.”